How To Choose the Right Fishing Flies

You can’t go fly-fishing without flies—that is, the bait used to attract fish, designed to look like tasty bugs, bait fish, and crustaceans. Understanding what kind of flies you need, when you need them, and how they’ll help you attract fish is a key part of mastering the sport. This guide will help you do just that, so you can catch more and curse less. 

TYPES OF FLIES

Most fly-fishing flies can be divided into one of these three categories.

Dry Flies

These imitate insects that stay on the surface of the water, most often resembling small insects, though they can also be made to look like larger fare, such as grasshoppers or even mice. As flies that float on the surface, they provide (ideally) the incredible show of a fish breaching to grab the fly. But since fish feed more frequently under the water, they may not be as effective. 

Nymphs

Designed to move through the water imitating all the different kinds of crawlers you would find under a rock in a stream, these flies resemble immature insects that live in the water before they hatch and move out. Make sure you match the hatch, and that you use a nymph that’s the appropriate size, color, and season. 

Streamers

Larger flies that look like smaller bait fish like minnows and leeches, streamers imitate these creatures as they swim through the water, either by allowing the fly to move with the current or through your own short or long pulls from your rod. 

CHOOSING A FLY

Knowing what type of fly you want to use isn’t enough, here’s what to look for next.

Match the Hatch

Choose the correct fly to match not only what bugs are in the water, but where they are in their maturation process, or “hatch.” 

Consult a hatch guide for your area or ask a local angler (fly shops are great resources, as are the Bait & Tackle Shop concierges at your local Public Lands store). By understanding where the insects in your waterways are in their hatch process, you can not only get the right insect, but the right size.

Fly and Hook Size

A fly’s size will be determined by the size of the hook it is tied on. Most hooks will range from Size 2 to Size 28, going by even numbers. The larger the number, the smaller the hook: A Size 28 is about 2.5-3 mm, while a Size 2 is about 31-35 mm. So, smaller hooks (like a 24-28) need smaller flies such as nymphs, while larger hooks (8, 6, or 2) need larger dry flies.

While the fly and hook size will move together, it’s also possible to get hooks that are varying degrees of short, long, or extra short, and extra long. These allow a fly to be tied smaller, or with additional variation, while still keeping the proportions of the hook and fly correct. 

Fly Patterns

When you are choosing a fly, it is important to understand how the fly is working and what it is doing that attracts fish. The method your fly uses to approximate a live insect is known as its pattern. Your knowledge of the fish in the river, plus the insects and where they are in the hatch, will determine which pattern is best. 

Imitative patterns

These match a specific insect to a high degree—and work best if you properly match the insect and hatch. This is an all-or-nothing option, though, and success requires a trained angler and a good eye. 

Impressionistic patterns

By imitating a few different fly species, these work well if you’re not exactly sure what insects are in the water, or if you want to be able to lure fish that are attracted to a few different types of flies.

Search patterns

Imitating a wide variety of insects by having ambiguous, messy features and neutral colors, these patterns are designed to loosely imitate a wide range of insects. Using a careful eye, you can notice where in the river, at what depth, and with what motion that fish bite at your fly, giving you important clues to choose your next fly.

Attractor patterns

These don’t imitate any type of insect in particular. Instead, they rely on bright colors and flashy materials to catch a fish’s attention and get it to snap at your fly. Attractors are great when there is not much of a definitive hatch, or you don’t see fish feeding at the surface. Rather, they rely on the embellishments to pique the interest and aggression of the fish. 

FINAL TIP

Start a collection of many different flies. Having a variety of styles, patterns, and sizes will ensure you are ready to catch whatever fish are in the water. 

All articles are for general informational purposes.  Each individual’s needs, preferences, goals and abilities may vary.  Be sure to obtain all appropriate training, expert supervision and/or medical advice before engaging in strenuous or potentially hazardous activity.